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Painting your home is more than just paint colors and wall textures. When you are selecting a company to paint your house they are going to be spending time inside your personal space so you want someone that will not only do a great job, but someone you can trust, too.

When we repainted our house a few years ago we took extra precaution, because we knew the painter would have full access to our home while we were away at work.

We made a list of criteria, and then interviewed several different painters before making our selection. We wanted to review references, proof of license and insurance, and of course information about how they planned to paint our house.

If their quote was in the right range, and they had proof of insurance and licenses, the next most important thing for us was their references – we asked for them to provide us with customers names and phone numbers – and then we called them.

When people give references they are often reluctant to give a bad reference for someone they know – so don’t ask ONLY questions that have yes or no answer, encourage them to have a conversation about the painting experience.

Remember, your are entrusting your home and its contents to the company you select, it is important that you can rely on them to be trustworthy.

We asked several specific questions when we were verifying the references:

1) On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being perfect and 1 being disappointed, how would you rate your satisfaction with the painter and the results and WHY?

2) What do you wish the painter had done differently?

3) Did they finish their work within the scheduled time?

4) Was the work completed professionally?

5) Were there any hidden charges or extras that were not included in the original price quote?

6) What was the best thing about working with this painter?

7) Would you recommend them to your family?

Number 7 is my personal favorite, there are folks you’d recommend to work for your friends, but do you like them enough to recommend them to work for your family.

Ultimately the painter we selected had not only great references, but brought along a portfolio of painting jobs to show us the styles and options and not just a bunch of paint chips.